Different Pages
by MariaWest
Summary: Shocking news isn't something new to Artemis, and she doesn't call a lot of things shocking at this point in her life. But she can easily say a simple phone call from her sister is shocking. But is the news the shocking thing, or the thoughts that follow it.


**Disclaimer:** I do not own Young Justice

**Author's Note:** I basically wrote this to avoid working on my other fic, but I also really just wanted to right some relationship fluff with Artemis and Wally. Too bad I can't follow through with happiness completely.

* * *

Artemis sat on the couch of their apartment with her feet tucked underneath her. She was chewing on the back of her pencil while leaning towards the coffee table in front of her. She had books scattered out over it with a rather thick pile of paper resting on her lap. Her hair should have been in a bun, but her continuous playing with it had it falling all around her. She was sure she looked like a complete mess, hair everywhere and in nothing but a large jersey, but at this point she did not care. She knew her housemate would not mind either.

"Wally," she called out from the couch, "can you grab me some water? This paper is killing me and I don't want to move in case I lose the ability to think."

A ginger looked up from the floor where he was lying, rubbing the belly of a dog. The dog was sprawled next him, tail banging loudly on the tiled floor. Grinning, he got up, exciting the dog, and walked to the kitchen nearby.

"Sure, babe. Do you want anything else?" Wally asked, opening a cupboard.

"I'll just take around a tenth of whatever you get yourself, now let me think. I have to finish editing this tonight," the blond said from the couch.

She heard the faucet start and smiled. She knew Wally was going to empty out half of their fridge making snacks for them, but she could not help but feel grateful. He was making sure she would not crash before her work was done. They had an unwritten rule to stay up together while the other worked, though both had more than once fallen asleep on the other while waiting.

Sighing, Artemis placed the paper on the table and stood up, stretching her arms up. She looked around the apartment and could not help but feel at complete ease. This place had become such a part of her, more than just a home. Sure, it was not the most glamorous of places to live, but Wally and she were not the most glamorous of couples. The apartment was just an extension of who they were at that point and she was content with it.

She sat back down, stretching her legs out on the couch. Her thoughts began to wander to what life would be like once they left here. Would they still be together? Would it be anytime soon, while they were still in school or once they were graduated? Would they still be retired? She had no doubt they would still be together, though in what shape she had no idea. She shook that thought out of her head. While she was curious on what their future would hold, she was not going to think too far ahead. For now, they were just going to live it day to day, no surprises, just routine.

The phone ringing snapped her out of her winding path of thoughts.

"Don't worry, I've got it," Wally called from the kitchen.

Artemis reached over to her paper, her intention to start working again, but she knew that the moment he started talking all her focus would be on the phone call.

"Hello, Wally speaking… Oh… Hi, Jade," his voice tightened as Artemis sat up straight on the couch. Jade was calling, but why? Normally she would just show up unexpectedly and bother them for an evening, but she never called in advance for anything. "Yes I still live here, I'm paying half the rent, thank you… What! No, I'm not being a pest to your sister and I know for a fact she never said that about me… What?... Yeah, of course she's here… Wait, you want to talk to her about Roy? What's wrong with Roy, he's with you?... Jade come on, tell me, I knew him first… Yeah, fine… Give me a second…"

Artemis heard the phone be placed on the counter and heard Wally walk into the living room. She could not help but smirk slightly at the discomfort on his face. Even though it had been years since Wally and Jade had met, the blond's sister still made Wally extremely nervous.

"Jade's on the phone and it's about Roy. Please talk to her quickly, I want to know if he's okay," the ginger said, worry spreading through his voice.

Nodding, Artemis stood up and quickly grasped his hand. "I'll get it out of her fast, don't worry, Kid Patient. And relax about Jade already, she probably won't ever kill you."

Wally stuck his tongue out at his girlfriend, but followed her quietly to the kitchen. Artemis picked up the phone and took a deep breath in, "Hey Jade, what's wrong? I haven't heard from you in ages."

"Oh, nothing's wrong, Artemis, I just have so big news for you, and I guess the speedy kid. Does he live up to that name in every aspect of his life, I've always been curious," Jade's voice said through the phone.

"Jade! Come on, that's not true!" the younger sister laughed, shooting a glance at Wally.

"What did she say?" he demanded, eyes widening. "Artemis, what did she say?"

She waved him off, though the ginger did not move from his spot. Laughing, Artemis' focus went back to the phone, "But seriously, Jade, what's up? You rarely call for important things."

"Well, I've been a bit busy taking care of a pair of gingers, you know how hard those are to take care of," her sister replied.

"Yeah, they are… Wait, a pair? What do you mean a pair?" Artemis asked, straightening up. She looked over to Wally, a confused look spreading on his face, most likely matching the one that she was wearing, "Jade, what did you do?"

"Well, that's the big news," Jade's voice was casual, too casual for Artemis' comfort, "I just so happen to be a mother, and therefore, the big news is you're an aunt."

Artemis froze. Every part of her decided that functioning was a process they no longer needed to do. This included her hands. The phone fell from it and almost hit the ground.

"Sorry, Artemis just dropped the phone," Wally said into it, his eyes plastered with worry. He was standing next her now, though she never saw him move, "What did you-"

Her body had begun to work again and she tore to phone away from him.

"You're a mother? What do you mean you're a mother? Oh my God, its Roy's, isn't it? Jade, are you serious? Why didn't you tell me earlier, does Mom know?" she shouted, making Wally take a step back and she could hear Jade waiting for her to finish. "Oh God… I'm an aunt… Wait, is it a boy or girl? What's their name? Jade, I can't believe you didn't tell me! I can't believe Roy's a dad!"

"Breathe, Artemis," her sister's voice was softer now, though there was still a hint of fire in it. "Yes, she's Roy's daughter, her name is Lian. The reason I didn't tell you this earlier is because Roy only found out a few weeks ago and we had some stuff to figure and I had to have him stop freaking out over the fact he's a dad. And like I would tell you before him, I'm cruel but not that cruel."

"Jade… Jade, you're a mom," Artemis whispered.

"It's pretty crazy, I know," her voice sounded distant, as if finally saying it out loud had changed the situation. "I have to go now. I've left Roy alone with Lian for too long and I'm not sure he knows how she works yet. Don't tell Mom, I'll get around to it. Don't bother about Dad, I don't even know if I want him to know. And don't call back, we're going to be busy for awhile."

Artemis nodded as she heard the call ended. She hung up on her end and placed the phone down on the kitchen counter. She could easily say this was one of the most stressful phone calls she had ever had in her life.

A hand snaked its way around her waist, making her jump slightly. She turned to look at Wally, whose eyes were brimming with concern. She tried to smile, but knew that this was not something she was going to be able to achieve.

"So, I'm an aunt now," she said softly.

"Yeah… Wow… Roy's a dad," he answered, his voice just as soft, "I honestly never thought he would be the first out of us to make it there."

"I don't blame you for thinking that," Artemis said. "He's been really messed up the last few years."

Wally nodded and sighed. He leaned forward and kissed her forehead before letting go of her waist. He walked out of the kitchen towards their living room.

She knew he needed a moment. Just a few weeks ago he had tried to save his friend from a downward spiral and now this news just piled on top. Artemis leaned against the counter, wondering how much her life was going to change because of this.

She could easily have admitted to never imagining herself as an aunt. After what Jade and she grew up with, she easily could picture her family line ending at the two of them. And who could really blame them? Growing up in that household made the idea of starting a family distant and undesirable. But Jade being a mom changed all those thoughts. It made her smile. She could just picture this little girl growing up in what should be the most dysfunctional, even more so than Artemis', family life but loving every second of it. Artemis had no doubt that Jade would whip Roy into shape and that should she be an amazing mother.

Then a voice whispered in her mind, "_I honestly never thought he would be the first out of us to make it there._" Wally had said it so casually that she did not think about it for more than a second. The first out of us. He was obviously talking about the four original sidekicks. He was talking about himself.

She moved quickly to the living room to see Wally sitting on the couch, scratching Brucely's head, the smile on the pale face was weak, but there. He looked up at her and his smile grew bigger. She did not return it.

"Wally, what did you mean when you said 'the first of us to make it there'?" she asked sharply.

"What?"

"What did you mean? Why wouldn't Roy be the first to be a father? He's older than all of you, and I'm assuming you were talking about the original four of you before you found Conner," Artemis explained, her eyes bearing down into his. Wally kept her gaze and she continued, "So why did you say that? Why wouldn't Roy be a dad first?"

Wally sighed and patted the seat of the couch next to him. The blond did not move and he frowned. Artemis knew she needed to keep her distance. Wally's tactic to avoid fighting was to make physical contact with her and pray she got distracted, and she was not going to let him win this one. Not when it was important.

"Look, I just never pictured Roy as a dad really, he was too much of a jerk for me to see it, and then the whole clone thing happened," he answered, his eyes leaving hers. "Why are you asking this, anyway? It's not a big deal. And I was wrong, Roy's a dad now, so what does it matter what I thought. Please just forget about, okay?"

"Wally… Who did you think would be a father first?"

Her words fell from her mouth before she could take them back. She wanted to talk them back immediately. They both knew the answer this question. They just had never heard the answer out loud. Artemis knew this was because Wally did not want to scare her. They never spoke much about that part of their future, as to be sensitive to her past. Kids had never been in Artemis' plan and she still did not know if they were. She always ignored that she knew they were most definitely part of Wally's plan.

"Artemis… Please…" he said weakly, still not meeting her gaze.

"Answer me, who did you think was going to be a father first?" her fear of the answer was over taken by her annoyance of him wanting to protect her. She knew he was trying to keep things easy for them, but this was the right time for this talk and she was not going to avoid it anymore.

Next thing she knew, Wally was standing in front of her, her hands being held tightly in his. His eyes began to search hers for reassurance to take the leap by answer. Taking a deep breath, he began to speak, "Me. I honestly believed I was going to be a dad first. Meeting you made me believe that more… Okay maybe not meeting you, but you understand. Babe, I have been ready to spend the rest of my life with you for so long, but I know we're on different pages when it comes to the future. That can't be helped though, you know I'm a speed reader."

She groaned at his words but a smile spread across her face.

"Artemis, I know you need to take your time with this stuff, and I love that about you. I love that you need to actually take a breath every now and then. Yes, I want to have kids someday, and yes I would be thrilled if I had them with you, but I don't need or want them now. Right now, I want just you and me and our dog. I want to finish school. I want to travel the world with you. Maybe I want to take up the tights again and punch bad guys with you. But for now, all I need is you, okay?"

She leaned up to him and lightly pressed her lips against his. Pulling back, she smiled, "Yeah, I think I can work with that."

He grinned and pulled her back in for another kiss. She wrapped her arms around his neck and his moved to her waist, slowly pulling her shirt up.

Then the phone rang again. Both of them groaned and looked at each other.

"I swear if that's Jade again…" Wally muttered, eyes narrowing.

"I'll get it," she said, kissing him quickly and moving out of his hold. She sprinted over to the phone, hoping the call will be quick before the mood was gone.

"Hello, Artemis speaking," she said, glancing over at Wally, who looked back at her extremely frustrated.

"Hey Artemis, it's Dick."


End file.
